Container of dental alloy



June 30, 1964- G. KOBERNICK 3,139,181

CONTAINER OF DENTAL ALLOY Filed Nov 21, 1961 INVENTOR.

GERALD KOBERN/CK HEEBEET 6. 50/0425 A rro/ewsy United States Patent 3,139,181 CONTAINER OF DENTAL ALLOY Gerald Koberniek, San Diego, Calif., assignor to Koberloy, Inc, a corporation of California Filed Nov. 21, 1961, Ser. No. 153,965 1 Claim. (Cl. 206-635) This invention relates generally to dental equipment and accessories and procedures and more particularly to a new and improved method of distributing and mixing dental alloy and a particular mechanism for accomplishing the same and capsule used in the same.

In the past it has always been desired to obtain some satisfactory means of accurately measuring the mercury and silver alloy used for dental amalgams. This has always been diificult because of the expensive equipment necessary to have accurate measurements, particularly of the mercury, and because of the fact that when the two are mixed they must be immediately used. It has also been ditficult because of the thorough mixing of these materials needed to make a satisfactory amalgam.

In the present systems in use, the most popular and wide spread means to accomplish this amalgamation of the mercury and silver is to place the same in a small capsule with a suitable pestle and place the capsule in a triturator, or amalgamator, which is a device which rapidly shakes the capsule back and forth with the materials thus being pounded by the pestle within the capsule.

This has numerous disadvantages, because each time such a device is used, the capsule must be carefully cleaned to avoid contamination of the next mix of materials, because mercury has a tendency to be thrown out (that is to leak out because of the great forces exerted) from the seal of the capsule, and because of the difficulty of measuring accurate quantities each time the item is used.

There have been limited, primitive and/or complex efforts in the past to provide divided capsules with a membrane or the like separating two sides of the capsule and placing the mercury on one side and the silver alloy and pestle on the other side of the membrane and allowing the same to be broken mechanically to cause the materials to mix.

Such systems, also, have had defects and have been less than completely satisfactory because of the fact that the membrane itself sometimes shreds and becomes mixed in with the amalgam causing failures because of the impurity, because sometimes the membrane does not tear perfectly and some of the mercury does not mix properly, difficulty of removing the membrane and/ or amalgam, difliculty in obtaining a tight seal between the two halves of the capsule and the like.

I have investigated this entire situation and have devised a new and improved method of supplying properly measured mercury and silver in a package which is ready for use by the dentist without further measuring, proportioning and preparation. I have accomplished this by preparing a fully divided capsule in which there is no membrane to be broken, but which has a sealed container in one part, with a valving arrangement around the side at one portion so that the mercury may be retained in the sealed container end but allowed to drop into the other end wherein the pestle and the silver are kept when desired.

I have devised a method of thus measuring and supplying properly pre-mixed quantities in accordance with the various desires and promotions as used by dentists and for different size fillings and dental restorations.

Thus, it is an important object of this invention to supply pre-measured quantities of mercury and amalgam ready for the dentist to use without measuring in his office.

It is a further object of this invention to provide the foregoing material in a disposable capsule designed to be accommodated in standard dental alloy mixing equipment.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method of supplying the dentist with properly pre-portioned quantities of mercury and the like.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method of supplying accurately measured quantities of mercury of uniform measurement with appropriate pestle and alloys which can be used conveniently and economically by practicing dentists.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of this invention will be clear to those skilled in the art upon reading the following specification in conjunction with the attached drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a preferred embodiment of the capsule of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a section on 2-2 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective of the lower portion of said capsule shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective of the upper portion of said capsule shown in FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 5 is a perspective of the insert 30 shown in FIGURE 2.

It will be observed that this capsule is composed of an upper and lower portion formed of plastic or the like preferably for economy purposes.

The lower portion 29 of the capsule is seen to be a hollow inverted dome with a cylindrical upper portion and having a shoulder 24 outstanding about its lower portion as shown. The smaller inner cylindrical neck 21 has a thread 22 molded or otherwise suitably formed thereon. The upper edge 23 of the lower portion of the capsule is preferably beveled inwardly and downwardly as indicated.

The upper portion 10 consists of a hollow dome with a cylindrical downwardly extending portion and has a groove on a portion of its inner surface 12, suitable to accommodate the thread 22 on the lower portion; thus the upper and lower portions may be screwed together.

The upper portion 10 has on its interior a circular groove 11 suitable to receive and hold tightly the insert 30 which will be hereinafter described.

The insert 30 has a concave-convex shape as shown with a tapered lower edge 35 as shown which fits tightly against the tapered inner lip 23 of the lower portion of the capsule when the two portions of the capsule are screwed together. Insert 30 is held in position by its head 33 in the grove 11, it has a stem 32 which extends upwardly to the inside of the upper portion 10 to provide a support firmly against the top of the upper portion 10 as shown.

A quantity of mercury 40 is shown in the upper portion 10 and silver amalgam 50 is shown in position in the lower portion 20. There is also shown a mixing pestle in the lower portion 20.

In use the upper portion is formed of a material such as a semi-rigid plastic. The mercury 40 is placed in the upper portion 20 while it is held upside down. The insert 30 is then snapped into position by pressing it until the head 33 snaps into place in the groove 1.1.

As an alternative the insert 30 may be snapped into position before any mercury is placed in the item, and then the item turned upside down and mercury inserted through the slot 34.

The slot 34 is provided in the edge of insert 30 as shown and is of such size that it is completely sealed 0 by the tapering lip 23 when the two halves are fastened making the insert 30 would be to have a thread around its edge instead of the bead and merely screw it into the threads used also for closing the two portions of the capsule together. I

In use, an accurately measured portion of mercury 46 is placed in the upper portion and an accurately measured portion of silver 50 together with the mixing pestle 69 is placed in the lower portion. Two portions are then screwed together tightly and thus may be kept indefinitely with the mercury and silver alloy completely separate and distinct from each other.

The dentist when he is ready to use the item, twists the upper portion loose from the lower portion a sufficient distancesuch that the mercury falls through the slot 34 and into the lower portion of the capsule. This is accomplished by having a relatively steep thread which allows the mercury to flow downwardly into the capsule upon turning approximately a quarter of a turn or less.

' The capsule, is, also tilted to the side where the slot 34 is located or is shaken slightly to make sure the mer cury runs around and falls through the hole.

The concave-convex insert 34 provides ease of dispensing the mercury downwardly in this manner and in addition provides a smooth surface at the opposed to the inner lower portion of the capsule end for the mixing which will later take place.

The user of this item then screws the top down tightly again so that there will be no leakage past the shoulder ,23 and through slot 34. He then plaoes the item into the triturator or amalgamator and allows it to be mixed for any proper given lengths of time, which times are well known to dentists and are well known in the art.

Upon completion of the mixing, the two portions are unscrewed, the amalgam is dropped out of the lower portion of the capsule, and then the entire capsule may be thrown away, thus there is no need for cleaning or reusing While the embodiment of this invention as shown and described is fully capable of performing the objects and achieving the advantages desired, many modifications will be clear to those skilled in the art. It is not my intention to be restricted to the specific embodiment shown which is described for illustrative purposes only.

' I claim:

A container of dental amalgam comprising: a first hollow cylindrical portion having one end open and one end closed by a generally spherically shaped section, said first hollow cylindrical portion being provided with a series of male threads adjacent its open end and about its outer surface and having its open end provided with a tapered shoulder about its thickness tapering from its outer edge to its inward edge in the general direction towards the closed end of said first hollow cylindrical portion; a pellet of silver alloy and a mixing pestle located within said first hollow cylindrical portion; a second hollow cylindrical portion having one end open and one end closed by a generally spherically shaped section, said open end having a series of, female threads engaged in the said male threads of the said first hollow cylindrical sections; a valve body having a bead fitting into an annular groove within said second hollow cylindrical portion located above said threaded portion, said valve body having a tapered edgeon one side in contact with said tapered edge of said open end of said first hollow cylindrical portion, said valve body having at least one slot extending through its thickness and into a portion of the tapered edge of the said first hollow cylindrical portion such that a complete passage through said slot from the said second hollow cylindrical portion to said first hollow cylindrical portion will be formed when the valve body is removed from its contact with said tapered edge of said first hollow cylindricalportion, but such that no full passage between said hollow cylindrical portions will exist when contact remains between said tapered edges of said valve body and said first hollow cylindrical portion, said valve body being concave on its side facing the interior of said first hollow cylindrical portion, said valve body fitting within said second hollow cylindrical portion at a distance from the closed end thereof so as to provide a chamber within said second hollow cylindrical portion; and a quantity of mercury within said chamber between said valve body and the closed end of said second hollow cylindrical portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,464,273 Schopfiocker Aug. 7, 1923 1,774,258 English 1 Aug. 26, 1930 2,318,917 .Arden May 11, 1943 2,382,978 Curry Aug. 21, 1945 2,527,991 Greenberg ,Oct. 31, 1950 2,813,649 Lapari Nov. 19, 1957 

